BL Library - Male Protagonist

Manga Review | Learning to Love at Your Feet by Atono Matsuri

Title: Learning to Love at Your Feet

Author(s): Atono Matsuri

Artist(s): Atono Matsuri

In this world, there are secondary genders and sex characteristics known as dynamics. As part of dynamics, there are doms, subs, switches, and normals. Doms are those who wish to control, praise, and punish. Subs are those who want to be controlled, earn praise, and be punished. There are exceedingly rare switches, and they can take the role of either a dom or sub during play. Then, there are normals, those who aren’t inclined or in need of any dom/sub play. Kippei is a sub but would like nothing more than to be anything else.

Kippei has lived his life trying everything he can to avoid the fact that he is a sub. He’s relied on medications to keep his needs at bay, but unfortunately, the time has come. He’s developed a resistance to the meds, so now he needs to find a partner. He’s not too keen on hunting for one organically, so he signs up for a government-run matchmaking service. What are the odds that the person he is matched with is his coworker Sota? With his secondary sex exposed, Kippei agrees to establish a partnership with Sota in exchange for his discretion.

Over time, Kippei begins to learn the joys of being a sub, but as he grows closer to Sota, he wonders if Sota sees him only as a sub or as something more.

Title: My Frilly Secret

Author(s): Tamuko Kuwata

Artist(s): Tamuko Kuwata

Aoi is known as the gloomy kid with no friends, and he agrees. However, it’s not for lack of trying. He would like to have friends, but his insecurities regarding his hobbies make it hard for him to reach out. His hobby in question? He enjoys the art of cross-dressing. Since he was a small child, Aoi has always been drawn to cute and feminine things, which he expresses in his bedroom decor and his collection of dresses, wigs, and accessories. Unfortunately, due to his insecurity, Aoi is forced to hide his hobby at home, unable to express himself publically.

One day, Aoi sees a dress he is drawn to. Unfortunately, the dress is $300, which is way out of his price range. Disheartened, he is forced to leave the dress behind… until his sister and classmates mention a method of earning money through “sugar daddies,” aka compensated dating. Interested in the opportunity, Aoi signs up for a profile and mentions his hobby in the listing, which draws the attention of a rather enthusiastic customer. While on the date, the customer pushes Aoi into going with him to a hotel to take photos of him while cross-dressing, which has Aoi on red alert and panicking.

Things aren’t looking so good until Yuto, one of Aoi’s silent and stoic classmates, comes in and rescues him. On the way out of the rescue, though, Aoi ends up exposing his cross-dressing hobby to Yuto. Thankfully, Yuto doesn’t seem bothered by it. Instead, he almost seems interested. In exchange for Yuto’s heroic rescue, Yuto asks for one thing in return: date him while cross-dressing so he can become comfortable with women. Grateful for all Yuto has done for him, Aoi agrees. Over time, though, Aoi begins to question why Yuto is so affectionate and kind, even though their romance is fake. Meanwhile, the enthusiastic “sugar daddy” continues to lurk around.

Title: Please Don't Bite Me So Much!

Author(s): Sangou Mitsuru

Artist(s): Sangou Mitsuru

Yanagi wants to be cool. So he’s bleached his hair and changed his image to achieve just that. But even with that change, Yanagi still isn’t putting out the image he desperately craves as a self-proclaimed “plain face.” Of course, it doesn’t help that he is put face-to-face every day at work with a guy who embodies all of the attitude and aesthetic he craves for himself: Igarashi. Igarashi is the talk of the town. He’s good-looking, a bit of a playboy, and he’s got an aesthetic that Yanagi would die for.

Needless to say, Yanagi isn’t Igarashi’s biggest fan. Even so, much like everyone else, Yanagi can’t help but be drawn to the tall, dark, and handsome coworker. But what draws Yanagi to Igarashi isn’t the same thing that draws anyone else in. Igarashi has a unique characteristic: a set of pronounced fanged canines. For whatever reason, Yanagi desperately wants to touch them. Instead, he wouldn’t mind if Igarashi bit him with those sharp teeth. But when would that chance ever come about?

Title: The Big Apple

Author(s): Harusari

Artist(s): Hodot

Joachim is in the relationship of his life with his hot hunk, Juergen. Unfortunately, they can’t be in a full-fledged relationship because Joachim has a huge secret. As far as his lover Juergen knows, Joachim works at a small finance company. In truth, though, Joachim, codename Sniper, works for the SIA. This secret government agency handles various undercover issues involving assassinations, mafia, magic, and all manner of things the average Joe isn’t even aware of in their day-to-day life. Every day, Joachim risks his life as the only sniper in the SIA, and he can’t say a word to Juergen without risking his life.

After a particular deadly mission where Joachim nearly lost his life, things are finally put into perspective. Joachim has to leave Juergen for his sake, especially before his next mission, which is pretty much a suicide mission. Joachim comes up with a plan to tell Juergen that he must return to Sweden and, as such, can’t be together with him anywhere, though. Juergen takes it well, which Joachim is simultaneously thankful for and hurt by… until Juergen decides to confine Joachim to prevent him from leaving him. If Juergen can’t be with Joachim normally, he’ll lock him up so he’ll never leave. With Joachim’s deadly mission coming up, he has to find a way to escape, even if he doesn’t want to.

Title: The Beautiful Greenness

Author(s): Miecohouse Matsumoto

Artist(s): Miecohouse Matsumoto

Taro is an author, or at least he is supposed to be, but he has been experiencing writer’s block that has been impossible for him to overcome. In the meantime, he has been freelancing and writing articles for a couple of publications to make ends meet. Otherwise, he spends his days lounging about his apartment, depressed and alone. Life doesn’t seem like it will change anytime soon until he runs into a greengrocer hawking his wares. Taro doesn’t intend to buy anything, but the greengrocer targets Taro and offers him a deal he can’t possibly refuse: 100 yen for a carrot and spinach.

Despite Taro not knowing how to cook, he accepts the deal and spends the rest of the day complaining about the persistence of the greengrocer. That night, he discovers his bath is out of order, and the following day, he is forced to go out to a public bath, where he runs into the same greengrocer. The two get into an argument due to Taro’s poor attitude and homophobic comments, which prompts Haruki, the greengrocer, to buy back the produce. However, while heading back to Taro’s house, Haruki discovers that Taro might be hiding something tender and sad inside him. When they finally arrive, Haruki takes the chance to see if he can peel back Taro’s layers to find what secrets he has hidden within.

Title: My Way with You

Author(s): u-pi

Artist(s): u-pi

Giran doesn’t care about most things anymore. Since his father’s suicide as a child, Giran has been raised by his grandmother, who devoted her entire being to raising him all on her own. As a result, Giran feels wholly indebted to her and spends his whole life working hard so he can one day pay her back for everything he has received from her. Unfortunately, though, Giran’s grandmother passes away at home alone during his work. Wracked with guilt for leaving her to pass away alone and being unable to fulfill the many promises he made to her, Giran’s life and goals fall by the wayside. He spends his days simply going through the motions, unable to move on with his life.

That is, until one day, he is at a club and catches the eye of a beautiful man named Seon-gyeong. The two have this immediate connection and magnetism that Giran can’t seem to shake. Somehow, they are constantly and inexplicably drawn to each other until they finally spend day after day together. Without any official declaration from either of them, they end up living together and spending more time together than they do doing anything else. But, as time goes on and their flame and passion fail to wane, it is clear something darker is pulling them together. Where did Seon-gyeong come from, and why is Giran so drawn to him?

Title: A Man of Virtue

Author(s): GGANG-E

Artist(s): Wook

Jinwoo works with his greatest enemy, Sangtae. Their rivalry began back in high school, where Jinwoo used to dominate academically. However, when Sangtae transfers to Jinwoo’s school, it isn’t long before Jinwoo roots himself firmly in Jinwoo’s spot, leaving Jinwoo permanently in second place. While this is frustrating, Jinwoo isn’t too worried about it. Of course, this won’t last forever. Sangtae is going to go to college, and they probably won’t ever see each other again, right? Wrong. As luck would have, Sangtae ends up working in the same company and even in the same department, and just as he did in high school, Sangtae rules the roost, leaving Jinwoo in the dust.

One evening, when Jinwoo is particularly frustrated by Sangtae, Jinwoo drinks excessively. Then, in his drunken stupor, he pukes on a haechi statue, drawing the beast’s ire. The following day, at random, Jinwoo is inundated by dirty fantasies to the point that he can barely function. Unfortunately, amid one of these fantasies, Sangtae catches Jinwoo trying to relieve himself, resulting in further embarrassment and rivalry between the two. Amid their fighting, though, Jinwoo realizes that he only gets the fantasies when he is near Sangtae, leading him to conclude that these are actually Sangtae’s fantasies.

With Sangtae mysteriously at the crux of Jinwoo’s curse, will he be able to team up with his greatest enemy to solve this issue? Or is this just one more reason to avoid Sangtae for the rest of his life?

Title: Love Tractor

Author(s): HmmYongYong

Artist(s): AngryMonster

Sun Yool desperately needs an escape. His relationship with his father has been tenuous at best, and his relationship with his boyfriend hasn’t been going much better. While trying to keep the balance in his relationships, he’s also struggling through law school. Things are beginning to come to a head with Yool’s mental health when his mother talks him into going to his grandfather’s farm for a break since his grandfather is in the hospital, unable to keep up his home. Yool accepts the offer and leaves the city to escape to the farm.

Yool expects many peaceful days ahead. However, he doesn’t expect to find a big, burly young adult named Yechan, whom he briefly knew as a child. Yechan grows attached to Yool, and soon, the days with Yechan far exceed the days Yool has alone, and while he would never admit it out loud, Yool finds himself growing attached to the boisterous young man. But even in this idyllic scenario with the eye candy that is Yechan, the darkness of the life he left behind is ever-looming and threatening the fragile happiness he’s built for himself.

Title: Ten Count

Author(s): Rihito Takarai

Artist(s): Rihito Takarai

Shirotani suffers from obsessive-compulsive disorder. He spends every day in fear of being contaminated. The only way he can make it through his day-to-day life is by covering himself completely and avoiding as much human contact as possible. As a result, Shirotani is always in long sleeves and long pants along with a set of gloves to protect his hands. Even with all of the protection, though, the moment he enters his home, he must strip completely and put the contaminated clothes away, then he has to wash his hands as many times as possible until they are chapped and bleeding. This is Shirotani’s routine.

At least it was, until the day his boss narrowly avoided being hit by a car. While parked on the side of the road, the company president received a phone call, which he took just outside the car. While on the phone, he failed to notice a car heading his way. Shirotani, seeing the oncoming vehicle, calls out to the president and reaches out to him, but at the very last second, his aversion to human touch stops him. Thankfully, though, a passerby on a bicycle saves the president. As it turns out, this savior is Kurose, a counselor at a psychiatric clinic, and the moment he sees Shirotani’s gloves, he identifies that Shirotani has germophobia.

Ashamed by his inability to save the president and from Kurose’s urging, Shirotani begins seeking help from Kurose. First, Kurose has Shirotani write down ten things he can’t do due to his obsessive-compulsive disorder – 1 being the easiest to achieve, 10 being near impossible. Then, together, Kurose and Shirotani go through each one and try to overcome them with exposure therapy. However, the line between counselor and patient begins to blur, and soon Shirotani is doing things with Kurose that disgust him, yet he craves it. Does Kurose truly see Shirotani as a patient needing treatment, or is there something more? And if there is more, can Shirotani overcome enough of his aversions to let Kurose in?

Title: Home Alone Together

Author(s): Shin Yuri

Artist(s): Shin Yuri

Junwoo is a hikikomori – a young adult who has become a recluse. For the past five years, since graduating high school and after the death of his parents, he has holed himself up in his childhood home, where he spends his days in idle existence. The only thing he has to look forward to is the occasional visit from his neighbor Hanbit, a guy he’s had a crush on since he was a kid. Otherwise, his days are filled with severe loneliness and the self-loathing he hasn’t been able to shake.

One day, Hanbit comes by, implying that he might be moving in with Junwoo. This lights a fire under Junwoo, and he immediately assumes this is his chance to win over Hanbit. However, when Hanbit comes over, he brings along a stranger: Wooyeon. It turns out that Hanbit isn’t planning to move in. On the contrary, he is moving away to be with his longtime girlfriend. However, in fear of Junwoo being left alone unsupervised, Hanbit has the great idea that Wooyeon should move in with Junwoo.

Neither Junwoo nor Wooyeon seem jazzed about the idea, but both seem compelled to go along with it because of their affection for Hanbit. So begins the awkward orbiting the two have as they live together. Despite their disdain for each other’s company, slowly but surely, they grow to tolerate one another. And soon, that tolerance evolves into something more, something neither of them expected it would be. But these two have a lot of old wounds that threaten the peace they have created with each other. Will they be able to move forward, or are they destined to drown amid their surging trauma?

Male Protagonist

Manga Review | Learning to Love at Your Feet by Atono Matsuri

Manga Review | My Frilly Secret by Tamuko Kuwata

Manga Review | Please Don’t Bite Me So Much! by Sangou Mitsuru

Manhwa Review | The Big Apple by Harusari

Manga Review | The Beautiful Greenness by Miecohouse Matsumoto

Manhwa Review | My Way with You by u-pi

Manhwa Review | A Man of Virtue by GGANG-E

Manhwa Review | Love Tractor by HmmYongYong

Manga Review | Ten Count by Rihito Takarai

Manhwa Review | Home Alone Together by Shin Yuri

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